Obama In Britain

Published: 22/01/2009

Obama in Britain
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
Britons of colour were ecstatic on Tuesday. Some let rivers of joy run down their faces , some screamed out as if the hills and oceans needed to know the news, many danced and sang, others just quietly hugged themselves and smiled. We had been with Obama since he took on Hillary Clinton, then McCain. His victory stirred us like nothing before. The nearest we came to this euphoria here was when Dianne Abbot, Bernie Grant, Paul Boateng and Keith Vaz walked proudly to sit in the lap of the white mother of parliaments.

But the Obama triumph has churned up other, more complicated feelings among Black Britons and Asians. I wore an Obama T shirt in my gym. Two muscular black men, nice guys I had seen there previously, said I , and Asian, was stealing the glory of one of theirs. The same claims were forcefully asserted when I opined that Obama was multiracial- biologically and culturally and again at the Fabian conference this Saturday. A number of Afro-Caribbeans and Africans stamp their ownership over the American president. I can understand why, but they are wrong.

Inevitably his election throws light on race and opportunity in Britain. Will we have an Obama in Britain any time soon? Is racism worse or better here? Do we feel more optimistic or pessimistic? Opinion is divided and we saw how in the reactions to this weeks upbeat speech by Trevor Phillips. He is right to celebrate the unstoppable rise of biracial Britons. Right too when he sees real progress compared with the rest of the EU. However, his conclusion that racism is waning to insignificance is staggeringly misjudged. The BNP has never been more popular; black and Muslim males, asylum seekers and new migrants face daily exclusion and abuse and the white peaks of our institutions are unchanged. Obama’s victory gives us hope, yes, but envy is not far behind.

I sense ambiguities among Muslims too. Though overjoyed as Neo Cons slink off to their uncertain futures, they fear Obama can’t deliver what they so want. The deliberated reassurance in his speech will help, but can’t stop the swelling anxiety, grown much since the Isreali operation in Gaza.

On the tube on Tuesday, a black schoolgirl said it was her birthday to a group of fellow pupils. They sang ‘Happy Obama Day to You’ and collapsed with fun and laughter, all colours and creeds.
Maybe it is too soon to dwell on the complicated responses I describe above. Let Britons rejoice a little longer, savour the blessed moment. Cold reality will blow in soon enough.

Published in The Evening Standard